March 10th 1997 Mirror Sites ![]() Download the Software Network Card Drivers ![]() Features User's Guide Help ![]() Search Distribution Rights Listserv Shareware Links ![]() Order the Software Help Us Promote NetSoft LAN Dealer Enquires Welcome Home Page | http://www.netsoft.ie/ CHAPTER 10 Network Hardware Drivers
This chapter includes a complete detailed description of each driver platform or standard. You should read only the sections on the platforms you will be using, for example, if you are using Ethernet cards, read the section on Ethernet Networks. In addition, if you wish to connect a laptop machine to your Ethernet-based network using the parallel port, you should also read the Parallel Port Networks section. Arcnet NetworksThis section gives a detailed explanation of how to install and configure an Arcnet-based network. You may require the Arcnet Cards User's Manual that is supplied with your Arcnet cards.Before you can install ARCNET.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] Port= [Arcnet-x] IRQ= [Arcnet-x] DMA= [Arcnet-x] RetryCount= [Arcnet-x] The x in [Arcnet-x] refers to the Arcnet card number. Normally, you only have a single Arcnet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([Arcnet-1]). If you have two or more Arcnet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of Arcnet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your Arcnet cards and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the NETsOFT LAN Arcnet driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet arcnet You may also include the Arcnet command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. Configuring your Arcnet cardsBefore you can install the Arcnet cards in your machines, there are a number of hardware settings that you must configure:Node Address. DMA Memory Segment. I/O Port Address Interrupt Request Line. ETS Setting The Topology The node addressArcnet cards have a 1-byte node address. This means that you can have a maximum of 255 possible addresses. The node address is set using dip switch settings that normally protrude through the rear expansion slot of your machine. This is to simplify changing the node address.The address used by the Arcnet card must be the same as the station address used by NETsOFT LAN. This is assigned by setting the MachineNode= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file to your selected node address. As the Arcnet driver loads, it reads the node address from the Arcnet card. If this address does not match the address used for the MachineNode= parameter, the Arcnet driver will display the correct dip switch setting for your Arcnet card's node address. In Brief - Node addresses
Arcnet DMA memory addressEach Arcnet card has a minimum of 2k RAM built-in. This is called a direct memory access (DMA) memory buffer. The location of the DMA memory may be changed using the jumpers or dip switches on the Arcnet card.When selecting the DMA memory address (also known as the memory segment), you must make sure that the address does not conflict with other devices in memory. For example, shadow RAM, ROM, or the EMS page frame. Below is a table showing the most common DMA memory segment addresses. Most Arcnet cards can use all of these addresses. Also shown is a Range column showing where the DMA memory ends. DMA Address Range D000h D07Fh D400h D47Fh D800h D87Fh C000h C07Fh C400h C47Fh CC00h CC7Fh E000h E07Fh The default DMA memory address used by most Arcnet cards is D000h. This address is recommended because it rarely conflicts with other RAM or ROM. In Brief - DMA memory segment
Arcnet I/O port addressThe NETsOFT LAN Arcnet driver controls and communicates with Arcnet cards through an I/O port address. This address is normally configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the Arcnet card.When you select the I/O port address (also known as the I/O Base Address), you must make sure that it does not conflict with any other device's I/O port address. Below is a table showing the most common I/O port addresses. Most Arcnet cards can use all of the addresses shown. Also shown is a Range column showing the range of addresses used: I/O Port Range Address 260h 26Fh 290h 29Fh 2E0h 2EFh 2F0h 2FFh 300h 30Fh 350h 35Fh 380h 38Fh 3E0h 3EFh The default I/O port address used by most Arcnet cards is 2E0h. This address is recommended because it rarely conflicts with other device I/O port addresses. In Brief - I/O port address
Arcnet interrupt request lineArcnet cards are interrupt-driven, this means that they inform the system by way of an Interrupt Request when a network card event occurs (such as receiving a packet of data). The interrupt request line used by the Arcnet card is normally configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the Arcnet card.When you select the interrupt request line (also known as the IRQ), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's interrupt request line. Arcnet PC/XT IRQ'sBelow is a table showing all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on a PC or an XT (8 bit slot) machine. Also shown in the table is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by an Arcnet card.
The default interrupt request line used by most Arcnet cards is 2. This IRQ is recommended because it does not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. Arcnet PC/AT IRQ'sBelow is a table showing all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on an AT or a 386 (16 bit slot) machine. Also shown is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it can be used by an Arcnet card.
The default interrupt request line used by most Arcnet cards for a 16 bit Arcnet card is 9. This IRQ is recommended because it does not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. In Brief - Interrupt request line
Arcnet Extended Time-out Setting (ETS)Most Arcnet cards have an Extended Time-out Setting (ETS). Normally, you should not change this setting. The ETS setting controls the hardware timing delay used by the Arcnet card. All Arcnet cards on the network must have the same ETS setting.This setting may be changed using the jumpers on most Arcnet cards. Below is a chart showing the available ETS settings: ETS Response Time (S) 78 285 563 1130 The default extended time-out setting used by most Arcnet cards is 78. In Brief - Extended Time-out Setting (ETS)
Arcnet bus and starThere are two types of Arcnet cards, bus topology and star topology. The cards you select depend on your cabling layout and distances. Once selected, all of your Arcnet cards should use the same topology (i.e. do not mix star and bus cards on the same network unless you are using an active HUB).Some Arcnet cards support both bus and star. These cards have additional jumpers that allow you to select the topology. If you have these cards make sure you set them to the same topology or the network will not work correctly. In brief - Arcnet bus and star
Installing two Arcnet cards in a machineNETsOFT LAN allows up to four Arcnet cards to be installed in a single machine. The main reason for wanting to do this is to connect a star topology with a bus topology network (assuming you do not have an active HUB).To do this, there must be a Router machine. This machine has two Arcnet cards installed. One is connected to the star network and the other is connected to the bus network. On the Router machine, you simply load the Arcnet driver twice and NETsOFT LAN does the rest. Using this basic principle, you can connect Ethernet based networks to Arcnet based networks. Ethernet NetworksThis section gives a detailed explanation of how to install and configure an Ethernet based network. You may require your Ethernet Cards User's Manual that is supplied with your Ethernet cards.There are a number of different Ethernet cards on the market. NETsOFT LAN supports most of these Ethernet cards, using either the ETHERNET.COM, SMC.COM drivers or a driver standard such as the Microsoft/3COM Network Driver Interface Specifications (NDIS), FTP Software's Packet Driver Specifications (FTP) or Novell's Open Datalink Interface standard (ODI). This section discusses Ethernet hardware configurations in general. It may be possible to configure your hardware using a software set-up program. If not, you will have to configure it using the jumper settings on the Ethernet cards. Once you have configured your Ethernet cards, you may load the Ethernet drivers. Because there are a number of different standards associated with Ethernet, each standard will be discussed separately. Configuring your Ethernet cardsThe following sections detail configuration settings that are common to all Ethernet cards. Some parameters may not be applicable to your particular Ethernet cards.Node Address. DMA Memory Segment. I/O Port Address. Interrupt Request Line. The node addressEthernet cards have a 6-byte node address. NETsOFT LAN converts this 6 byte node address to a single-byte node address. The Ethernet driver uses the MachineNode= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file, as the Ethernet card node address.In Brief - Node addresses
Ethernet DMA memory addressSome Ethernet cards have a shared memory mode. This memory is called a direct memory access (DMA) buffer. The location of the DMA buffer may be changed using the jumpers or dip switches on the Ethernet card.NOTE If you are using NE1000 or NE2000 compatible Ethernet cards, you may ignore the DMA memory address settings, as these cards do not have a DMA memory address. When selecting the DMA memory address (also known as the memory segment), you must ensure that the address does not conflict with other memory resources. For example, shadow RAM, ROM, or the EMS page frame. Below is a table displaying the most common DMA memory segment addresses. Most Ethernet cards can use all the addresses. Also shown are two Range columns displaying where the DMA memory ends for Ethernet cards with 16k and 64k of memory respectively: DMA Address Range for 16k Range for 64k C000h C3FFh CFFFh C400h C7FFh D3FFh C800h CBFFh D7FFh CC00h CFFFh DBFFh D000h D3FFh DFFFh D400h D7FFh D3FFh D800h DBFFh E7FFh DC00h DFFFh EBFFh E000h E3FFh EFFFh E400h E7FFh N/A E800h EBFFh N/A EC00h EFFFh N/A The default DMA memory address used by most Ethernet cards is C800h. This address is recommended because it rarely conflicts with other RAM or ROM. In Brief - DMA memory segment
Ethernet I/O port addressEthernet software drivers control and communicate with Ethernet cards through an I/O port address. This address is normally configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the Ethernet card.When you select the I/O port address (also known as the I/O Base Address), you must make sure that it does not conflict with any other device's I/O port address. Below is a table showing the most common I/O port addresses. Most Ethernet cards can use most of the addresses shown in the table. Also shown in the table is a Range column showing the range of addresses used: I/O Port Range Address 200h 21Fh 220h 23Fh 240h 25Fh 260h 27Fh 280h 29Fh 2A0h 2BFh 2C0h 2DFh 2E0h 2FFh 300h 31Fh 320h 33Fh 340h 35Fh 360h 37Fh 380h 39Fh 3A0h 3BFh 3C0h 3DFh 3E0h 3FFh The default I/O port address used by most Ethernet cards is 300h. This address is recommended because it rarely conflicts with other device's I/O port addresses. In Brief - I/O port address
Ethernet interrupt request lineEthernet cards are interrupt-driven, this means that they inform the system by way of an Interrupt Request when a network card event occurs (e.g. such as receiving a packet of data). The interrupt request line used by the Ethernet card is normally configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the Ethernet card.When you select the interrupt request line (also known as the IRQ) you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's interrupt request line. Ethernet PC/XT IRQ'sBelow is a table showing all the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on a PC, or an XT (8 bit slot) machine. Also shown in the table is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it can be used by an Ethernet card.
Ethernet PC/AT IRQ'sBelow is another table showing all the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on an AT or a 386 (16 bit slot) machine. Also shown is the normal purpose of the IRQ and whether or not it can be used by an Ethernet card.
The default interrupt request line used by most Ethernet cards is 3. This IRQ may conflict with your COM2 port's interrupt request line, so you may need to change it from IRQ3 to another. In Brief - Interrupt request line
Ethernet standardsThere are several different Ethernet standards. Each standard has advantages and disadvantages, these are discussed briefly to begin with and then in more detail.Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS)Disadvantages NDIS drivers tend to be slower than other drivers. They also require more memory (from 10-20k memory) and are cumbersome to install as they must be loaded from your CONFIG.SYS file. The reason these drivers are bulky and slow is that the NDIS specification is rather complex. In addition, most of the code for these drivers is written in 'C' instead of machine code. These drivers tend to spend more time conforming to the NDIS specification, than in actually communicating. Advantages The main advantage of the NDIS standard is that it is supported by all Ethernet card manufacturers. The NDIS standard was jointly designed by 3COM Corporation and Microsoft Corporation. FTP Software's PC/TCP Packet Driver StandardDisadvantages Packet Drivers are not supported directly by most manufacturers and may be hard to obtain for your particular Ethernet cards. Most packet drivers in the public domain are incomplete and do not work correctly. Advantages Packet Drivers are easy to install and require only about 4-5k of memory. If you plan to use the packet driver standard, try to obtain the driver developed by your network card's manufacturer, as these drivers will have been fully tested. These drivers also tend to be very fast as they are generally written in machine code. The PC/TCP Packet Driver specification was developed by FTP Software, Inc. SMC LMAC/UMAC Driver Specifications StandardDisadvantages This driver standard provides support for Western Digital or SMC's own Ethernet cards only. The drivers use approximately 8k of memory. Advantages This single driver is jointly developed by SMC and the designers of NETsOFT LAN. SMC develops the LMAC (Lower Media Access Control layer), and the NETsOFT LAN designers develop the UMAC (Upper Media Access Control layer). The two layers are then linked forming a single driver. The main advantage of this standard is that SMC has fully tested the Lower MAC with all of their Ethernet cards. Another good reason why NETsOFT LAN supports this standard is that the same driver will support the entire range of SMC's Ethernet adapters (more than 40 in total). SMC also supply FTP, ODI and NDIS drivers with their Ethernet cards. Novell's Open Datalink Interface (ODI)Disadvantages There are no disadvantages with the Novell ODI standard. Advantages The main advantage of the ODI standard is that it is supported by all Ethernet card manufacturers. The Multi Link Interface Drivers (MLID's) are written in machine code and tend to require about 4k of memory. The modules within the standard (LSL.COM and MLID drivers) may be loaded and unloaded on demand. The ODI standard was designed by Novell Corporation. NETsOFT LAN's Advanced Transport Specifications (ATS)Disadvantages Regarding the ETHERNET.COM driver, the single disadvantage with this driver is that it supports only NE1000, or NE2000 compatible network cards. As most Ethernet cards have an NE1000, or NE2000 compatible mode, this is not really a major disadvantage. Advantages The ETHERNET.COM driver is faster than its counterparts, as it has been specifically designed to take full advantage of NETsOFT LAN's ATS standard. This driver requires about than 2k of memory (a fraction of its NDIS counterpart). This driver is also the easiest to install. You simply type ETHERNET. All of the drivers supplied as part of the NETsOFT LAN operating system use the ATS standard as this standard is capable of talking directly to hardware and managing third party protocol stacks at the same time, as well as its invisible routing capabilities within the same system or network. The ATS standard was designed by the designers of NETsOFT LAN. Mixing Ethernet standardsWith NETsOFT LAN, you can mix any of the above standards on the same network. This means you may have a mixture of old and new Ethernet cards, using different standards. NETsOFT LAN converts all of these standards to its own Advanced Transport Standard (ATS).The Advanced Transport Standard conforms to the IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standard. Below is a chart showing the frame type that the NETsOFT LAN Advanced Transport Standard uses, when sending packets across the Ethernet hardware: Ethernet 802.3 Frame Number Bytes Fields Destination Address 6 Source Address 6 Type - 4147 2 Data 46-1500 NETsOFT LAN's Advanced Transport Standard ignores or chains (passes to the next protocol stack) any packets that are not of type 4147h (the frame type value may be changed in the DOSNET.INI file). This means that NETsOFT LAN is capable of co-existing on the same wire (Ethernet cable) as other Ethernet network operating systems. It is assumed by NETsOFT LAN that any other protocol stacks (network systems) ignore NETsOFT LAN's Ethernet packets. NETsOFT LAN's Ethernet installationThis section applies to Novell NE1000, and NE2000 compatible Ethernet cards. The NETsOFT LAN Ethernet driver (called ETHERNET.COM) automatically detects which type of card you are using.Before you can install ETHERNET.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] Port= [Ethernet-x] IRQ= [Ethernet-x] The x in [Ethernet-x] refers to the Ethernet card number. Usually, you have only a single Ethernet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([Ethernet-1]). If you have two or more Ethernet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of Ethernet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your Ethernet cards and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you may load the NETsOFT LAN Ethernet driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet ethernet You may also include the Ethernet command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. Standard Microsystems Ethernet installationThis section applies to SMC and Western Digital Ethernet cards. The NETsOFT LAN SMC Ethernet driver (called SMC.COM) automatically detects which type of card you are using.Before you can install SMC.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] DMA= [SMC-x] DMAPageSize= [SMC-x] DMASize= [SMC-x] IRQ= [SMC-x] Port= [SMC-x] SlotNum= [SMC-x] The x in [SMC-x] refers to the SMC Ethernet card number. Usually, you have only a single SMC Ethernet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([SMC-1]). If you have two or more SMC Ethernet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of SMC Ethernet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your SMC Ethernet cards and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the NETsOFT LAN SMC Ethernet driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet smc You may also include the Ethernet command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. FTP Software's PC/TCP Ethernet installationThis section applies to users wishing to use the FTP Software's Packet Driver standard. To use this standard, you require the Packet Driver that is supplied with your Ethernet card. This may be found on your Ethernet card's software driver diskette.Packet drivers are integrated into the NETsOFT LAN operating system by linking the FTP.COM driver to the packet driver (FTP.COM is the Upper MAC Layer and the Packet Driver is the Lower MAC Layer). The linkage procedure is done automatically by the FTP.COM driver. To load packet drivers with NETsOFT LAN, you should always load the packet driver before the FTP.COM driver (which may only be loaded after the basic network has loaded). Loading Packet Drivers DOSNET.COM PKTDRVR FTP.COM To configure your packet driver, you may require your packet driver's User's Manual. Most packet drivers require that you set the following parameters on the packet driver's command line: Packet Driver's Software Interrupt Number The packet driver's software interrupt number must be within the range of 60h through 80h inclusive (32 interrupts). The packet driver uses this interrupt to communicate with NETsOFT LAN. The default Interrupt number is 60h. If you are running software that uses Interrupt 60h, you may need to use a different software interrupt number. I/O Port Address This is the I/O port address that is used by the Ethernet network card. Interrupt Request Line This is the interrupt request line that is used by the Ethernet card, and has the same value specified for the IRQ= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file, under the heading [FTP-1]. Other Command Line Parameters Some packet drivers may also require that you use other parameters on the packet driver's command line. These will be detailed in the Packet Drivers User's Manual. Before you can load FTP.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] IRQ= [FTP-x] The x in [FTP-x] refers to the Ethernet card number. Usually, you have only a single Ethernet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([FTP-1]). If you have two or more Ethernet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of Ethernet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your Ethernet cards, and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the Packet Driver, and then FTP.COM driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet pktdrvr 0x300 0x03 0x60 ftp You must replace the word pktdrvr with the actual filename of your packet driver, and specify the actual command line parameters for the packet driver. You may also include the FTP.COM and Packet Driver commands in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. NOTE The FTP.COM driver may display various error messages. These are all self-explanatory. The FTP.COM driver only supports class 1 Ethernet Packet Drivers. The FTP.COM driver only supports drivers that meet the Packet Driver Specifications Version 1.07 and higher (The current version is 1.09). Microsoft/3COM NDIS installationThis section applies to users wishing to use the NDIS standard. To use this standard, you require the NDIS driver that is supplied with your Ethernet card. This may be found on your software driver diskette.Before you can install the NDIS drivers, you must first copy your NDIS device driver and PROTOCOL.INI files from the driver diskette to the \DOSNET sub directory on your hard disk. You can copy these files using the following commands at the DOS prompt: c: cd\dosnet copy a:\path\filename.DOS copy a:\path\protocol.ini You must replace \path\filename with the actual path and file name of your NDIS device driver. There are five steps involved in the installation of an NDIS driver with NETsOFT LAN. Configure the PROTOCOL.INI file. Load the PROTMAN.DOS device driver. Load the NDIS device driver. Load NETsOFT LAN. Load NDIS.COM. PROTOCOL.INIThe PROTOCOL.INI file is supplied with your NDIS driver. It uses the same basic structure as the DOSNET.INI file. It also contains a header section, and a number of keynames and parameters. These parameters tell the NDIS driver which hardware settings the driver should use.Below is a sample PROTOCOL.INI file that is supplied with the Microsoft NE2000.DOS NDIS device driver. This driver is available from Microsoft's bulletin board service. Sample PROTOCOL.INI file Microsoft NE2000 NDIS Driver [NE2000] IOBASE = 0x300 INTERRUPT = 3 DRIVERNAME = MS2000$ This sample file contains only four lines. The header is [NE2000]. It uses the keyname IOBASE= to specify the I/O port address used by the card. It uses the keyname INTERRUPT= to specify the Interrupt request line used by the card. Finally it specifies the driver's DOS device name, which is MS2000$. Your particular PROTOCOL.INI file will include parameters and names specific to your particular Ethernet card. PROTMAN.DOSThis file is the Microsoft/3COM Protocol Manager. It must be loaded from your CONFIG.SYS file before your Ethernet card's NDIS driver by using the following command:device=\dosnet\protman.dos /i:\dosnet The /I:\dosnet parameter must specify the directory name that contains the Protocol Managers overlay file PROTMAN.EXE. PROTMAN.EXEThis file is the overlay file that is used by the PROTMAN.DOS Protocol Manager to read the parameters from your PROTOCOL.INI file, and pass them to your NDIS driver.NE2000.DOSThis file is the actual NDIS device driver itself. Your NDIS driver's name will be different. All NDIS device drivers have an extension of .DOS or .OS2. You must use the driver with the extension .DOS.The NDIS device driver must be loaded from your CONFIG.SYS file after the PROTMAN.DOS Protocol Manager device driver by using the following command: device=\dosnet\protman.dos /i:\dosnet device=\dosnet\ne2000.dos NDIS.COMThis is the NDIS link driver. This driver will link to your particular NDIS device driver, completing the NDIS protocol installation. Before you can load NDIS.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] IRQ= [NDIS-x] The x in [NDIS-x] refers to the Ethernet card number. Usually, you have only a single Ethernet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([NDIS-1]). If you have two or more Ethernet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of Ethernet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your Ethernet cards, and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the network (e.g. DOSNET.COM), and then NDIS.COM at the DOS command line. The following shows an example CONFIG.SYS file and NETSTART.BAT file: Sample CONFIG.SYS file parameters for the NDIS standard files=20 buffers=20 device=\dosnet\protman.dos /i:\dosnet device=\dosnet\ne2000.dos Sample NETSTART.BAT file cd\dosnet dosnet ndis Novell ODI installationThis section applies to users wishing to use the ODI standard. To use this standard, you require the LAN driver (also known as the MLID driver) that is supplied with your Ethernet card. This may be found on your software driver diskette.Before you can install the ODI drivers, you must first copy your ODI MLID device driver and NET.CFG files from the driver diskette to the \DOSNET sub directory on your hard disk. You can copy these files using the following commands at the DOS prompt: c: cd\dosnet copy a:\path\filename.com copy a:\path\net.cfg You must replace \path\filename with the actual path and file name of your ODI MLID device driver. There are five steps involved in the installation of an ODI driver with NETsOFT LAN. Configure the NET.CFG file. Load the LSL.COM link support layer. Load the MLID device driver, e.g. NE2000.COM. Load NETsOFT LAN. Load ODI.COM. NET.CFGThe NET.CFG file is supplied with your ODI driver. It uses the same basic structure as the DOSNET.INI file. It also contains a header section, and a number of keynames and parameters. These parameters tell the ODI driver which hardware settings the driver should use.Below is a sample NET.CFG file for a Novell NE2000.COM MLID device driver. Sample NET.CFG file Novell NE2000 ODI Driver Link Driver NE2000 Frame Ethernet_II Int #1 3 Port #1 300 This sample file contains only four lines. The header is Link Driver NE2000. It uses the keyname Frame to specifiy the frame type (which must be Ethernet_II for NETsOFT LAN). It uses the keyname Port to specify the I/O port address used by the card. It uses the keyname Int to specify the interrupt request line used by the card. You can edit the NET.CFG file using a text editor program such as EDIT.COM supplied with DOS, by typing the following at the DOS command line prompt: EDIT \path\net.cfg LSL.COMThis file is the Novell Link Support Layer. It must be loaded before your Ethernet card's MLID device driver using the following command:LSL NE2000.COMThis file is the actual MLID device driver itself. Your MLID driver's name may be different. All MLID device drivers have an extension of .COM or .EXE.The MLID device driver must be after the LSL link support layer program by using the following command: LSL NE2000 ODI.COMThis is the ODI link driver. This driver will link to your particular MLID device driver, completing the ODI installation.Before you can load ODI.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] BOARD= [ODI-x] The x in [ODI-x] refers to the Ethernet card number. Usually, you have only a single Ethernet card installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([NDIS-1]). If you have two or more Ethernet cards installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of Ethernet cards you have installed. Once you have configured your Ethernet cards, and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the network (e.g. DOSNET.COM), and then NDIS.COM at the DOS command line. The following shows an example NETSTART.BAT file: Sample NETSTART.BAT File cd\dosnet lsl ne2000 dosnet odi Parallel Port NetworksThe parallel port driver is designed to connect a laptop, through its parallel port, to an Ethernet or Arcnet based network. It may be integrated in to any of the hardware platforms or even used on its own.If you wish to connect two machines using a parallel cable, simply run the parallel cable between the two machines and load the parallel port driver on each machine. If you wish to connect a laptop to an Ethernet or Arcnet based network using the parallel ports, simply connect the laptop's parallel port to one of your Ethernet or Arcnet based machine's parallel ports, and run the parallel driver on the laptop, and on the connecting machine. Before you can install PARALLEL.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] Port= [Parallel-x] IRQ= [Parallel-x] The x in [Parallel-x] refers to the parallel port number. Usually, you have only a single Parallel port installed in each machine, so x would represent the number 1 ([Parallel-1]). If you have two or more parallel ports installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of parallel ports you have installed. Once you have configured your parallel ports, and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you may load the NETsOFT LAN parallel driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet parallel You may also include the parallel command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. Configuring your Parallel portsBefore you can use your parallel network, there are three settings that must be configured:Node Address. I/O Port Address. Interrupt Request Line. The node addressParallel ports do not use node addresses, unlike network cards. NETsOFT LAN assigns a logical node address to each machine that is connected by the parallel ports. This address may be assigned by setting the MachineNode= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file to your selected node address.In Brief - Node addresses
Parallel I/O port addressThe NETsOFT LAN parallel driver controls and communicates with parallel ports through an I/O port address. On most parallel ports, this address is fixed. On some parallel ports, this address may be configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the parallel port card.When you select the I/O port address (also known as the I/O Base Address), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's I/O port address. Below is a table displaying the most common I/O port addresses. Most parallel ports use one of these addresses: I/O Port Address 378h 278h 3BCh The default I/O port address depends on the type of machine, or display card, you are using. In Brief - I/O port address
Parallel interrupt request lineThe parallel ports, when used with NETsOFT LAN are interrupt-driven. This means that they inform the system by means of an Interrupt Request when a parallel port event occurs (e.g. such as receiving a packet of data). The interrupt request line used by the Parallel port is normally fixed.On some parallel ports, you can configure the interrupt request line. If you can select the interrupt request line (also known as the IRQ), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's interrupt request line. Parallel PC/XT IRQ'sBelow is a table displaying all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on a PC or an XT (8 bit slot) machine. Also shown in the table is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by a parallel port.
The default interrupt request line used by most parallel port cards is 7. This IRQ is recommended because it does not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. Parallel PC/AT IRQ'sBelow is a table that displays all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on an AT, or a 386 (16 bit slot) machine. Also displayed is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by a parallel port.
The default interrupt request lines used by most parallel ports is 7 for LPT1, and 5 for LPT2. These IRQ's are recommended because they do not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. In Brief - Interrupt request line
Serial Port NetworksThe serial port network is designed to connect a laptop through its serial port, to an Ethernet or Arcnet based network. It may be integrated into any of the hardware platforms, or even be used in isolation.If you wish to connect two machines using a serial cable, simply run the serial cable between the two machines, and load the serial port driver on each machine. If you wish to connect a laptop to an Ethernet or Arcnet based network using the serial ports, simply connect the laptop's serial port to one of your Ethernet or Arcnet based machine's serial port, and run the serial driver on the laptop and on the connecting machine. Before you can install SERIAL.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] Port= [Serial-x] IRQ= [Serial-x] Speed= [Serial-x] If you are using a single serial port as a network card, then x is [Serial-1]. If you are using two or more serial ports as network cards, on the same machine then x is equal 1 through to the number of serial ports you are using as network cards (within a single machine). Once you have configured your serial ports and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you can load the NETsOFT LAN serial driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet serial You may also include the serial command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. Configuring your Serial portsBefore you can use your serial network, there are four settings that must be configured:Node Address. Baud Rate. I/O Port Address. Interrupt Request Line. The node addressSerial ports do not use node addresses, unlike network cards. NETsOFT LAN assigns a logical node address to each machine connected by the serial ports. This address may be assigned by setting the MachineNode= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file to your selected node address.In Brief - Node addresses
The baud rateSerial ports send and receive data in bits, rather than bytes. The baud rate is the speed at which the serial ports send and receive data. The higher the baud rate, the faster the data transfer.Most serial ports can operate at a maximum speed of 115,200 bits per second (BPS). Each machine that uses the serial ports must use the same baud rate as the connecting machine. NOTE On some machines, you may not be able to operate at 115,200 bps due to hardware designed errors in the serial ports. On these machines, you will have to run at slower speeds, or install a serial port card that can run at 115,200 bps. Below is a table showing the most popular speeds used for serial ports. It must be noted that the serial port driver can operate at all speeds, from 1200bps through 115,200 bps. Also shown in the table is the speed value you must use for the Speed= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file: Baud Rates Speed= 115,200 1 57,600 2 38,400 3 28,800 4 9,600 12 The default baud rate is 115,200 bps. If your serial port does not work at this speed, try using 57,600. In Brief - The baud rate
Serial I/O port addressThe NETsOFT LAN serial driver controls, and communicates with serial ports through an I/O port address. On most serial ports, these addresses are fixed. On some serial ports, these addresses may be configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the serial port card.When you select the I/O port address (also known as the I/O Base Address), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's I/O port address. Below is a table showing the standard serial port addresses for COM1 through COM4. If you have installed additional serial ports, your serial port address may differ: I/O Port Used for Address device 3F8h COM1 2F8h COM2 3E8h COM3 2E8h COM4 Each serial port has its own default address. On some serial ports, these addresses may be switched around. In Brief - I/O port address
Serial interrupt request lineThe serial ports, when used with NETsOFT LAN, are interrupt-driven. This means they inform the system by means of an Interrupt Request when a serial port event occurs (e.g. such as receiving a packet of data). The interrupt request line used by the serial port is normally fixed.On some serial ports, you can configure the interrupt request line. If you can select the interrupt request line (also known as the IRQ), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's interrupt request line. Serial PC/XT IRQ'sBelow is a table displaying all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on a PC or an XT (8 bit slot) machine. Also shown in the table is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by a serial port.
Serial PC/AT IRQ'sBelow is another table displaying all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on an AT, or a 386 (16 bit slot) machine. Also shown is the normal purpose of the IRQ and whether or not it may be used by a serial port.
The default interrupt request lines used by most serial ports are 4 for COM1 and 3 for COM2. These IRQ's are recommended as they do not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. If you wish to use more than two serial ports with NETsOFT LAN, you must use a separate interrupt request line for each serial port. In Brief - Interrupt request line
Wide Area NetworksThis section explains how you can use your standard Hayes-compatible modem, or fax/modem, as a network card. This allows you to connect two or more local area networks, forming a wide area network.Once connected, you can access remote site servers as if they were local network servers using standard DOS commands. This eliminates the need for dedicated communication software. The commands used to initiate wide area communications are a subset of the NET command. These are all explained in Chapter 3 "THE NET COMMAND". Before you can install MODEM.COM, you must firstly set the following parameters in your DOSNET.INI file. All of these parameters are explained in detail in Chapter 17 "THE DOSNET.INI CONFIGURATION FILE". DOSNET.INI Under Heading parameters MachineNode= [Setup] Port= [Modem-x] IRQ= [Modem-x] Speed= [Modem-x] Init1= [Modem-x] Init2= [Modem-x] Init3= [Modem-x] Init4= [Modem-x] The x in [Modem-x] refers to the modem number. Usually, you have only a single modem installed, so x would represent the number 1 ([Modem-1]). If you have two or more modems installed, then x represents 1, 2, 3 or 4, depending on the number of modems you have installed. Once you have configured your modem and set the parameters in your DOSNET.INI file, you may load the NETsOFT LAN modem driver at the DOS command line by typing the following: cd\dosnet dosnet modem You may also include the modem command in your NETSTART.BAT batch file. Note If your modem machine is re-booted during communications, it does not necessarily mean that your communication session has ended (i.e. the line is still open). The modem driver detects this condition, and continues normal communications after booting. Configuring your ModemsBefore you can use your modem wide area network, there are four settings you must configure, as follows:Node Address. The Baud Rate. I/O Port Address. Interrupt Request Line. The node addressModems do not use node addresses, unlike network cards. NETsOFT LAN assigns a logical node address to each machine connected by a modem. This address may be assigned by setting the MachineNode= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file to your selected node address.In Brief - Node addresses
The baud rateModems send and receive data in bits, rather than bytes. The baud rate is the speed at which the modems send and receive data. The higher the baud rate, the faster the data transfer.Most modems operate at very slow speeds (between 2400 and 9600 bps). Both the local modem and remote site modems must be set to use the same baud rate. Some modems (most newer modems) can use different DTE and DCE rates. The DTE rate is the speed which the computer communicates with the modem. The DCE rate is the speed the two modems communicate with each other. If you have one of the modems (usually identified as having a throughput of 14,400 bps or higher), select the highest DTE baud rate available, usually this is 57,600 bps. This speed may be selected by setting the Speed= parameter to 2 (i.e. 115,200 ÷ 2 = 57,600). On some 2400 bps modems and fax/modems you may be able to use a DTE rate of 9600 bps (i.e. Speed=12). For these modems you should include the appropriate initialisation strings for the Init2= and Init3= parameters in the DOSNET.INI file under the heading [Modem-x]. Below is a table displaying the most popular speeds used for modems. It must be noted that the modem driver can operate at all speeds from 1200 bps through 115,200 bps. Also displayed below is the speed value that you must use for the Speed= parameter in the DOSNET.INI file. Baud Rates Speed= Auto-detect 0 1,200 96 2,400 48 4,800 24 9,600 12 14,400 8 19,200 6 28,800 4 57,600 2 The default baud rate is normally 2400. This is because DOS initialises the serial ports to 2400 baud during the boot-strap. In Brief - The baud rate
Modem I/O port addressThe NETsOFT LAN modem driver controls and communicates with modems through an I/O port address. These addresses are fixed on most modems, and may be configured (or selected) using the jumpers on the modem.When you select the I/O port address (also known as the I/O Base Address), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's I/O port address. Below is a table displaying the standard modem addresses for COM1 through COM4. Your modem's I/O port address may differ. I/O Port Used for Address device 3F8h COM1 2F8h COM2 3E8h COM3 2E8h COM4 Each modem has its own default address, depending on which serial port it is connected to. On some modems and serial ports these addresses may be switched around.
In Brief - I/O port address
Modem interrupt request lineModems, when used with NETsOFT LAN, are interrupt-driven. This means that they inform the system using an Interrupt Request when a modem event occurs (e.g. such as receiving a packet of data). The interrupt request line used by the modem or serial port is normally fixed.On some modems and serial ports, you can configure the interrupt request line. If you can select the interrupt request line (also known as the IRQ), you must ensure that it does not conflict with any other device's interrupt request line. Modem PC/XT IRQ'sBelow is a table displaying all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on a PC or an XT (8 bit slot) machine. Also displayed below is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by a modem or serial port.
Modem PC/AT IRQ'sBelow is a table displaying all of the available interrupt request lines (IRQ's) on an AT, or a 386 (16 bit slot) machine. Also displayed is the normal purpose of the IRQ, and whether or not it may be used by a modem or serial port.
The default interrupt request lines used by most modems and serial ports are 4 for COM1 and 3 for COM2. These IRQ's are recommended because they do not conflict with other device's interrupt request lines. If you wish to use more than two modems or serial ports with NETsOFT LAN, you must use a separate interrupt request line for each modem or serial port. In Brief - Interrupt request line
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